Board waives fees to start demolition

The Board of Selectmen on Monday waived the fee associated with the razing the former Tahanto school building, which could pave the way for the 50-year-old building to come down as early as next week.

At issue was the general contractor's refusal to pay the for the demolition permit, Building Inspector Anthony Zahariadis said.

Selectman James Wood expressed some dismay at the situation because the decision could cost the town between $10,000 and $18,000 in immediate fees. But the prevailing thought was that a delay could cost the town money next year, Selectman Matthew Mecum said. The contractor paid just over $321,000 in fees so far.

Mecum serves as the selectmen's liaison to the Building Committee. He noted demolition is expected to start next week.

Zahariadis remained stalwart in his opinion that the building permit for the new school did not cover the demolition of a separate structure, regardless of whether it is on the same piece of property, as the contractor has argued.

Zahariadis said the issue was raised at the start of the project, and he and the contractor have disputed it all along. The issue is before selectmen now because the building is due to come down to make way for playing fields, which should be able to be used during the next school year if installed this spring.

Since the old school and the new school were separate buildings, he said procedure requires a demolition permit. A demolition permit is the only way the Board of Assessors is made aware that a structure needs to be removed from the tax roles. The same would be true for a homeowner who tears down a garage or fills in a pool, Zahariadis said.

“A demo permit is the only means of communication from the building department to the assessors to have the structure removed,” he said. “If they don't (pull a permit), they will be taxed for it.”

Zahariadis noted the process, not the fee itself, was the issue. However, he pointed out he has no authority to waive building fees. That is the purview of the Board of Selectmen.

“It's not a huge fee. It's not a game-changer,” he said. “If I were a parent, I'd want my kid playing here and not being bused all over the state.”

All of the other requirements for tearing down the building are complete, Zahariadis said.

Mecum, while saying he preferred the town receive its money, in this case it may end up a loss. He pointed out that, last year, after the School Committee failed to include in its budget the cost of extra buses for athletic teams who had to play and practice at other sites, an emergency allotment of $40,000 was needed.

“That $18,000 could get eaten up pretty quickly once we start paying for busing,” he said.

Ultimately, the board voted unanimously to waive the demolition fee. Zahariadis said he expects to issue the permit this week.

Keep up to date with the news from Boylston and West Boylston. Like us on Facebook under The Boylston/West Boylston Banner, or, follow our Twitter feed.